Vegetable cleaners



United States Patent 3,139,927 VEGETABLE CLEANERS Robert L. Dyar, 1820 S. 1st St., Milwaukee, Wis. Filed July 20, 1964, Ser. No. 385,546 11 Claims. (Cl. 153.16)

This is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 228,946.

My invention relates to a vegetable cleaning system, and more particularly to a washing and scouring device for the preparation of vegetables, such as potatoes or the like. The system is particularly useful in cleaning those vegetables, such as potatoes, that are cleaned prior to a skin removing process.

It is manifest to anyone familiar with the processing of vegetables, such as potatoes or the like, that hand cleaning thereof is a slow, tedious, as well as costly operation. It is the prime purpose of this invention to provide an efficient system for thoroughly cleaning a mass of vegetables, such as potatoes or the like.

Another purpose is to provide a tumbling drum for the purpose described which enables all of the products in the drum to be kept in a constant state of agitation and movement for efiicient cleaning of the same.

A still further object is to arrange a tumbling drum so that it not only may be used for cleaning vegetables but also as an aid in the skin removing process.

Other and further objects of the invention will become more apparent as the description proceeds, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FTGURE 1 is a side elevation of the entire unit shown partially in cross section;

FIGURE 2 is an end view of the discharge or front end of the unit;

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the rear or receiving end of the unit;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary cross sectional view of the discharging end of the unit;

FIGURE 5 is a cross section of the cylinder and actuating rollers illustrating the actuating brush and its relation to the cylinder, and taken at the line 5--5 in FIG- URE l; and

FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic, sectional illustration of an abrasive section on the inner wall of the cylindrical drum.

Similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views, and referring specifically now to the same, the character It) designates an elongated cylindrical drum which is generally horizontally suspended within a frame having vertical supports ill and horizontal cross members 12.

The cross members 12 support bearings 14. A drive shaft 15 extends through the bearings 14 and has supporting rollers 16 mounted thereon. There is a similar shaft 15 extending longitudinally through hearings on the oppositely disposed cross member 12. The drum it) rests on the support rollers iii. One end of the drive shaft 15 is shown equipped with a sprocket 17.

Another pair of horizontal cross members 18 are attached to the vertical supports 11. A plate 19 is attached to these members 18 to support a motor 2i) and a speed reducer 21, which speed reducer is equipped with a drive shaft 22 mounted on bearings 23 on the platform or plate 19. The shaft 22 is equipped with a sprocket 24 connected with the sprocket 17 on the shaft 15 by means of a chain 25 for revolving the drum 16 when the rollers 16 are revolved. Obviously, other forms of driving means for rotating the drum may be used.

The motor 20 actuates the speed reducer 21 by means of a chain 26 disposed over a sprocket 27 on the motor til 20, and a sprocket 28 on the shaft 29 extending from the speed reducer 21.

Drum 10 has a horizontal shaft 30 extending through its entire length and generally coaxially with the drum, which shaft 30 is supported by bearings 31 (see FIGURE 4). Bearings 31 are supported on an end plate 32 and an end plate 33. End plates 32 and 33 are fixed to frame members 11 in close proximity to the front and rear ends of the drum it). The outer end of shaft 30 carries a sprocket 34 connected to a sprocket 35 on the shaft 22 by means of a chain 36 (see FIGURES 1 and 3) for the rotation of the shaft 30.

A rotary brush 37 is mounted on a shaft 38, which extends through the entire length of the drum It The shaft 38 is supported at both of its ends in bearings 39,

which are carried in arms 39a which extend radially from shaft 30. The arms 3% are swingahly supported on shaft 30 by means of bearings 40. The brush 37 revolves in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the drum 10 (see FIGURE 5). Shaft 38 is rotated by a chain 41 engaging a sprocket 42 on theshaft 39 and a sprocket 43 on the shaft 38 (see FIG- URE 1).

By referring to FIGURES 2 and 3, it will be noted that the shaft 38 supporting the brush 37 is free to move upward or downward in an arcuate slot 44 in the end plates 32 and 33. Slot 44 should have a length such as to allow the brush supporting arm 39a to move between a position approximately horizontal and a position approximately vertical. A bailie 45 attached to the shaft 38 seals this opening or slot 44 as the shaft 38 moves upward or downward due to contact with the vegetables being processed. Tension springs 46 may be connected between the frame and arms 39a so as to relieve a portion of the weight of brush 3'7 and enable easier upward movement thereof.

Resting on the upper edges of the plates 32 and 33 and attached thereto is a perforated spray tube or pipe 47 having its perforations or apertures 48 disposed down ward. This tube 4 7 is shown capped at one end 49 and leads from the other end 50 to a source of water supply.

The end plate 32 on the discharge end of the as sembly has a hinged door 51, and the end plate 33 on the front or loading end may be equipped with a hopper 52 shown in phantom, which may be of varied shapes or design for loading the unit.

The cylinder or drum may be smooth on the inner surface or it may be covered with abrasive cylinders, which may be in one piece or in sections, depending on the process being performed. If only a washing operation is required, the drum or cylinder can be smooth on the inside, while if the potatoes or the like are to be scoured or peeled, an abrasive covering can be employed.

When abrasives are used on the interior of the abrasive cylinder, the abrasive covering may be effected simply by depositing abrasive grains on an adhesive which coats the inner wall of the cylindrical drum. The abrasive coating may also be effected by bolting or screwing abrasive sections to the Wall of the drum. These sections may take the form of a layer of backing material, such as sheet metal or sheet asbestos, with abrasive grains deposited and held in an adhesive coating thereon with each section having a length corresponding to the interior length of the drum and with each section accounting for a por tion of the inner circumference of the drum, as for example Such a section is diagrammatically illustrated in FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings with the backing material being designated at 60, the adhesive coating at 60a, and the abrasive grains designated at 61. 62

represents bolts which holds the abrasive section in place.

When using abrasive sections, it is advantageous to use sections wherein the adhesive coating is cut or serrated at spaced intervals along its length as appears in FIGURE 6. In FIGURE 6, it will be noticed that grooves 63 are formed in the adhesive coating with the bottoms of the grooves bordering the surfaces of the backing material 60. These grooves 63 may be spaced at intervals of every inch or so along the length of the section. Use of the grooves enhances the cutting action of the abrasives and also permits greater flexure of the sections so as to more readily accommodate the sections to slight irregularities of shape and contour in the interior surface of the drum.

In operation, vegetables are fed to the inlet side of the drum as through the inlet chute 52. Preferably, enough vegetables are deposited in the drum so that two or more superimposed layers of vegetables are present in the lower portion of the drum. As drum it) rotates, it moves this mass of vegetables toward brush 37 as is seen in FIGURE 5. The vegetables frontally opposed to brush 37 are contacted by the bristles of the brush and are repelled thereby and more or less kicked toward the rear of the moving vegetable mass. As the brush 37 contacts the vegetable the bristles of the brush impart a scrubbing action to the surfaces of the vegetables contacted. At the same time, the rotating action of the bristles imparts a spinning or tumbling motion to the vegetables as they are repelled toward the rear of the moving mass. Thus, as the process continues, the vegetables, after several contacts with the brush, will have all portions of the skin contacted thereby and scrubbed.

The floating action of brush 37 allows a relatively light pressure to be exerted between the bristles of the brush and the vegetables being cleansed. In this regard, the downward forces acting on the brush may be those of the weight of the brush and arm 42 alone (as opposed by springs 46), although counterweights can, of course, be added to vary this force if desired. The floating action of the brush is particularly advantageous in that it allows the brush 37 to ride up the inner periphery of the drum until such time as it may fall due to the lack of contact with vegetables. In this regard, the amount of superimposed layers of vegetables frontally opposed to the brush may vary from instant to instant. Where many superimposed layers are frontally opposed to the brush at one time, as where the major height of the pile or mass of vegetables is next to the brush, the brush may start riding up the inner periphery of the drum as it works on the several layers presented to it and moves these several layers to the rear of the mass. The brush may then move downwardly as the depth of the pile opposed to the brush diminishes.

The clearance between the bristles of the brush and the inner periphery of the drum should be such that vegetables may not pass through the space therebetween. At the same time there should be a slight clearance so as to avoid frictional engagement between the bristles of the brush and the inner periphery of the drum. If the bristles of the brush are highly flexible the clearance should be extremely small, whereas if they are relatively stiif the clearance can be larger.

Relatively large amounts of vegetables can be placed in the drum and properly cleaned. For example, a drum six feet long and with an internal diameter of thirty inches, and using a six inch diameter brush with flexible nylon bristles, can accommodate 350 pounds of beets when the drum is rotated at 44 r.p.m. while the brush rotates at 500 r.p.m. The drum is about one-third full in this example.

Although the speeds of rotation of the drum and brush can be varied, a speed of 500 r.p.m. for the brush and 48 r.p.m. for the drum can be used for relatively tough skinned vegetables. For lighter skins, the speeds may be decreased.

As an aid to conveying the product into and out of the drum, the drum may be tilted so that the inlet end is higher than the exit end, thus allowing gravitational how d of the vegetables from the entrance end to the exit end thereof. Even without tilting the drum, there is some natural flow of the mass from the entrance end of the drum to the exit thereof, due to the tendency of the mass to spread out evenly over the length of the drum.

During the cleansing process, it is advantageous to admit a spray of water to the product being cleaned, as through the spray pipe 48. Under some circumstances, steam or heated water vapor may be admitted through pipe 43 so as to both moisten the surfaces of the vegetables being cleaned in furtherance of the cleansing process, while at the same time heating the skins of the vegetables as an aid in removing the skins of the vegetables in a later process.

The system illustrated can advantageously be used with a variety of different vegetables, such as potatoes, beets or the like, where the skin is to be removed after cleaning of the product.

Whereas I have shown and described an operative form of the invention, it should be understood that this showing and description thereof should be taken in an illustrative or diagrammatic sense only. There are many modifications in and to the invention which will fall within the scope and spirit thereof and which will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The scope of the invention should be limited only by the scope of the hereinafter appended claims.

I claim:

1. A vegetable processing machine including an elongated drum and means for rotating the drum, means for supporting said drum for rotation about an axis such that a mass of material within said drum moves by gravity to a lower, interior, circumferential wall portion of the drum, an elongated brush positioned within said drum at a location adjacent the interior wall of said drum and means mounting said brush with its axis eccentric to the axis of said drum and for movement about said axis of said drum, means for rotating said brush in a direction such that the bristles of the brush closest to the inner wall of said drum move in an opposite direction to the movement of the wall of the drum at that point, said brush being positioned so that the bristles thereof are relatively close to the inner wall of said drum whereby upon rotation of said drum and said brush, material within said drum is conveyed toward said brush during rotation of said drum and is progressively contacted by said brush and expelled toward the rear of the moving mass of material.

2. The structure of claim 1 wherein said brush and said drum are rotated at different speeds and said brush is rotated at a speed greater than the speed of rotation of said drum.

3. A machine for cleansing vegetables including a supporting frame and a drum mounted for rotation on said frame, an elongated rotary brush positioned within said drum, said brush having a supporting and driving shaft extending longitudinally of the drum, said supporting and driving shaft being rotatably received in arms extending radially with respect to the axis of rotation of said drum, means for supporting said arms for rotation about said longitudinal axis of said drum, means for rotating said drum in one direction, and means for rotating said brush in the opposite direction.

4. The structure of claim 3 wherein the weight of said brush supporting and driving shaft, brush and arms is opposed by tension springs interconnected between said frame and said shaft.

5. The structure of claim 3 wherein said arms are rotatably supported on a shaft extending through said drum centrally thereof and along the longitudinal axis thereof, and said means for rotating said brush supporting shaft includes means for rotating said centrally positioned shaft and means interconnecting said centrally positioned shaft and said brush supporting shaft to cause rotation of said drum supporting shaft.

6. The structure of claim 3 wherein the opposite ends 7. The structure of claim 3 wherein the opposite ends of said drum are open and said frame includes plates opposed to the open ends of said drum in close proximity thereto, said plates having feeding and discharge openings therethrough, said plates having arcuate slots therein -with the ends of said brush supporting shaft extended through said slots. 7

8. A vegetable processing machine including an elongated drum and means for rotating the drum, means for supporting said drum for rotation about an axis such that a mass of material Within said drum moves by grav ity to a lower, interior circumferential wall portion of the drum, an elongated impeller positioned within said drum with its axis eccentric to the axis of said drum and at a location adjacent the interior wall of the drum and means mounting said impeller for movement about the axis of said drum, said impeller having radially ex tending impelling elements positioned along the length of said impeller, means for rotating said impeller in a direction such that the elements of the impeller closest to the interior wall of said drum move in an opposite direction to the movement of the wall of the drum at that point, said impeller being positioned so that the elements thereof are relatively close to the interior wall of said drum whereby upon rotation of said drum and said impeller, material within said drum is conveyed toward said impeller during rotation of said drum and is progressively contacted by said impeller and expelled toward the rear of the moving mass of material.

9. A machine for cleansing vegetables including a supporting frame and a drum mounted for rotation on said frame, an elongated rotary impeller positioned within said drum, said impeller having a supporting and driving shaft extending longitudinally of the drum, said supporting and driving shaft being rotatably received in arms extending radially with respect to the axis of rotation of said drum, means for supporting said arms for rotation about said longitudinal axis of said drum, means for rotating said drum in one direction, and means for rotating said impeller in the opposite direction.

10. A machine for cleansing vegetables including a supporting frame and a drum mounted for rotation on said frame, said drum having an interior abrasive sur face, an elongated rotary brush positioned within said drum, said brush having a supporting and driving shaft extending longitudinally of the drum, said supporting and driving shaft being rotatably received in arms extending radially with respect to the axis of rotation of said drum, means for supporting said arms for rotation about said longitudinal axis of said drum, means for rotating said drum in one direction, and means for rotating said brush in the opposite direction.

11. A vegetable processing machine including an elon gated drum and means for rotating the drum, said drum having an interior abrasive surface, means for supporting said drum for rotation about an axis such that a mass of material within said drum moves bygravity to a lower, interior circumferential wall portion of the drum, an elongated impeller positioned within said drum with its axis eccentric to the axis of said drum and at a location adjacent the interior wall of the drum and means mounting said impeller for movement about the axis of said drum, said impeller having radially extending impolling elements positioned along the length of said impeller, means for rotating said impeller in a direction such that the elements of the impeller closest to the in terior wall of said drum move in an opposite direction to the movement of the wall of the drum at that point, said impeller being positioned so that the elements thereof are relatively close to the interior wall of said drum whereby upon rotation of said drum and said impeller, material within said drum is conveyed toward said impeller during rotation of said drum and is progressively contacted by said impeller and expelled toward the rear of the moving mass of material.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner. 

3. A MACHINE FOR CLEANSING VEGETABLES INCLUDING A SUPPORTING FRAME AND A DRUM MOUNTED FOR ROTATION ON SAID FRAME, AN ELONGATED ROTARY BRUSH POSITIONED WITHIN SAID DRUM, SAID BRUSH HAVING A SUPPORTING AND DRIVING SHAFT EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY OF THE DRUM, SAID SUPPORTING AND DRIVING SHAFT BEING ROTATABLY RECEIVED IN ARMS EXTENDING RADIALLY WITH RESPECT TO THE AXIS OF ROTATION OF SAID DRUM, MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID ARMS FOR ROTATION ABOUT SAID LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF SAID DRUM, MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID DRUM IN ONE DIRECTION, AND MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID BRUSH IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION. 